and her psychopathic killer.

A visitor to the Island from Germany, Miss Herkommer was brutally killed by Leroy Burgess during a visit to Dockyard in April of last year.

Convicted rapist, Burgess, 25, was on an unsupervised work release scheme from Casemates when he dragged Miss Herkommer into the tunnel of the Maritime Museum and choked her to death.

He pleaded guilty to manslaughter with diminished responsibility and was given a life sentence, after denying murder, in Supreme Court earlier this year.

Since then it has emerged that Minister of Health and Social Services, the Hon. Quinton Edness had refused Burgess an early release and suggested he needed more psychiatric treatment and counselling, and join an anti-drug scheme.

Mr. Edness has also questioned the fact that the man was allowed out of Casemates on the work release scheme.

Psychiatrist at St. Brendan's Hospital, Dr. Richard Lament said that Burgess was one of the worst cases he had ever come across.

Miss Herkommer, a 27-year-old schoolteacher had been in Bermuda to visit her sister Christine who works as a jeweller in Hamilton.

Christine Herkommer was furious that the prisoner had been allowed to roam unsupervised in a tourist area.

And she said it was her family, not Burgess, that had been punished by Bermuda's justice system.

Miss Herkommer said that she had spoken to lawyer Mr. Saul Froomkin at the weekend but declined to comment any further.

And it was Mr. Froomkin who revealed that the family will be taking legal action, yesterday.

Mr. Fromkin said: "We have written to the Government and to Mr. Burgess advising them that the family will be making a claim against them in regards to Miss Herkommer's death.'' Attorney General Mr. Walter Maddocks said that his department had not received any notification of a claim by yesterday afternoon.